Appeal No. 1998-1315
Application No. 08/334,751
limiting than “dry” and constitutes new matter (first
supplemental answer, Paper No. 19 pg. 2). The examiner
concedes (first supplemental answer, Paper No. 19, pg. 2) that
“a dry multi-stage filtering means” was supported in the
original disclosure by way of the preferred embodiment, but
the phrase “an exclusively dry multi-stage filtering means”
added in an amendment after the first office action recites
new matter. It is the examiner’s position that appellants
“have changed the scope of [the] disclosure
. . . [and] have further limited the scope of [the] disclosure
by now changing the description of their invention and their
claims to the same to recite exclusively dry filter
components. . . . This type of ‘after-thought’ limitation is
improper” (first supplemental answer, Paper No. 19, pg. 3).
Since a “dry multi-stage filtering means” as set forth
in claims 3, 10, 14, 19 and 20 of the application has been
determined by the examiner to have support in the original
disclosure (supplemental answer, Paper No. 19, pg. 2) and the
term “dry” means “having no moisture,”3 it is our view that
3 A copy of the page from Webster’s New World Dictionary
which includes this definition is attached to this decision.
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